Title: How To Lead a Life of CrimeAuthor:Kirsten MillerEdition: hardcoverSeries: noneReleased Date: February 21st, 2013Publisher: Razorbill
Goodreads / Amazon A meth dealer. A prostitute. A serial killer.
Anywhere else, they’d be vermin. At the Mandel Academy, they’re called prodigies. The most exclusive school in New York City has been training young criminals for over a century. Only the most ruthless students are allowed to graduate. The rest disappear.
Flick, a teenage pickpocket, has risen to the top of his class. But then Mandel recruits a fierce new competitor who also happens to be Flick’s old flame. They’ve been told only one of them will make it out of the Mandel Academy. Will they find a way to save each other—or will the school destroy them both?
Flick's father is known for his money and success, but what he isn't known for is murdering his son and abusing his other son. Flick received abuse all throughout his childhood and ran away, determined to live past it. Now he finds himself living on the streets in New York City, pick-pocketing and stealing. After completely a job for Lucian Mandel, Flick is invited into Mandel Academy - a school determined to make powerful people that know how to manipulate the system.
I always like novels that occur in schools - like private schools inspired by Gossip Girl and Private. I also love novels about spies/dangerous people, like the Heist Society novels. You put the two together and it makes How to Lead a Life of Crime by Kirsten Miller. I was destined to love it.
And I did like it - a lot! People would ask me what I was reading, and I had no choice but to explain what was going on. I just liked reading, and talking about the book that much!
I haven't read too many books focused from a male's point of view, but Kirsten Miller did it right. Flick was a strong character - determined to succeed, yet not follow in his father's footsteps. He knew how to manipulate others to get what he wanted and make sure he saved the people he loved. Working hard seems to be the only way Flick can work. He has a little bit of oddness to him as well. Flick had to deal with his younger brother, Jude's, death. Pretty much, his father killed him and it's known. But Jude's obsession with Peter Pan in his younger years now haunts Flick and often dreams about Jude in his Peter Pan costume. It kind of makes it seem like Flick does have a different side to him and that he's not completely indestructible. But people were still afraid of them, and reluctantly let him to the top. I kind of was surprised by how easily he forced himself to the top. At some points it didn't seem believable, but whatever.
Joi is Flick's girlfriend, who he helped when he was living on the streets in the Lower East Side of New York. She's a very helpful person, and brought in many orphans and made them into normal human beings. When Flick left her, it was actually kind of upsetting - even though it was only a few chapters in. It was eerie how quickly Kirsten Miller made us enjoy Joi's company. When she made her appearance at Mandel Academy, oh gosh. CRAP WENT DOWN. I really liked her at Mandel Academy. Unlike Flick, she didn't dominate - she shined which brought people towards her. People didn't let her rise to the top because they were afraid of her. They let her rise because she was liked by many of them. One thing I still can't understand is why Joi was so mad at Flick for leaving. I mean, he wasn't even gone for that long and I doubt they had spent that much time together.
I liked the minor characters, and some of them I wished we would have seen more of. Gwendolyn was sure interesting, and I'm not sure what I think of her. I actually really liked her in the beginning. Is it weird that I almost idolized her? After her past was revealed, she took a turn for the worse, and in the end... ew. It was just weird for her in the end. Then there was characters like Ella, Audrey, Lucas, and a bunch of others. I'm glad that we got to meet many of these characters and connect with a lot of them throughout the book. Also, after the last pages of the book, there's a little guide with all the characters, what they were in Mandel Academy for, and what happened to them after.
The ending was probably my favorite part. It was all over the place, but in a good way. I was just flying through the last few pages, rushed by the intense scenes. There was some moments where I was like "WOAH. WHAT?!" and then other moments where I was practically squealing waiting to see what happened next.
Be aware about this novel. The characters are violent and cruel. There are deaths in this book, and they're not taken lightly. Some of them go in depth with the gore, but truthfully, I kind of liked it.
I have to say that I really enjoyed this novel! It wasn't one of my favorites, but if there would have been a few minor changes, then I definitely would have added this to my favorites! The length of this book is a little long, so you have to be really invested in it to finish the book, I think. Thankfully I loved it and could read it quickly enough! I have yet to read Gallagher Girls, but I have a feeling that this is a little similar, with much more gore and controversial topics.
